Undercurrent of Emotion
by aikakone
Summary: MKR 2 manga On the stormy night of the Magic Knights' return to Cephiro, Ferio relishes his connection to Fuu and shrewdly discerns Clef's hidden feelings for Umi, much to the Mage's surprise. FF & UC


**UNDERCURRENT OF EMOTION**

The prince walked the halls of the castle fondling one of his earrings in thought. Fuu was back. They all were! He _had_ wanted to see the green Wind Knight again, so he did not begrudge whatever strange force brought them back to their world. He did resent the crumbling that had happened to their world since the loss of Emeraude, but he did not blame the girls from another world.

Fuu. He sighed in contentment thinking of her name. His moment of peace was turned to displeasure as he heard the sounds of storm outside the castle. He went to find Guru Clef to speak about it.

"Do you hear it?" he asked once he finally found the man.

Knowing what he meant, Clef nodded. "I can see it better from my chambers."

"I will come with you," Ferio offered.

"If you wish," was the swift reply.

They walked in silence because it was Clef's way, and Ferio didn't have the need to be incessantly speaking. When they got to the Guru's rooms, the two looked out to ominous skies. Both men could see that outside the castle walls Cephiro was crumbling.

Even without the help of the three Knights, it was not known how much longer their world would still exist. That type of uncertainty made the erosion of the world accelerate faster without adding in the factor of three invading countries.

Ferio breathed out heavily while watching the sky with the mage. The view was disturbing, but his heart was lighter for the return of the Magic Knights.

"Are you happy to have them return?" Clef asked seriously with a hint of worry on his voice.

They still didn't know what the return of the Knights meant. Whose will in Cephiro was strong enough to cause them to come back? Could it be the call of the next Pillar in a dormant state?

"I am," Ferio answered. "Fuu... she is a lovely girl. So clever."

"That is not all you like about her," the shorter man said with a slight smile.

"No," smiled Ferio with not quite a blush. "But you care for one of them, too. I know it!"

Clef frowned. "That is an absurd idea. They are all special girls, and if they have returned to help, we are fortunate. I do not feel attachments to one more than the others as you do to Fuu."

"I _know_ one is more special to you. You said her name. I heard you," Prince Ferio said to Guru Clef. "She might have heard you, too," he added shyly.

Testily the mage asked, "Whose name?"

"Umi," Ferio replied. "She was the only one you specifically addressed by name when they returned to us. You did not greet my Fuu by name. You did not call out the name of the Fire Knight Hikaru, either."

The mage's eyes narrowed, and he did not seem willing to discuss it the young prince. His expression made Ferio uncomfortable, so he looked out to the storm in the skies instead of at Guru Clef's face. He reminded himself that the three Knights had impacted _all_ their lives, so it was not for him to judge why the Master Mage had singled out the Water Knight above the others.

"Perhaps I was mistaken," Ferio said as a way of making amends, "though I know for certain a particular Summoner is happy to see her, even if you aren't."

"Yes, he is," Clef agreed noncommittally. He _wasn't_ going to have a discussion with the prince about his feelings, whatever they were, for the Water Knight.

Turning away from the skies, Ferio excused himself from the Master Mage's presence. "I will make sure all is well in the rest of the castle."

The other man nodded, and the prince walked out of his chambers.

Clef returned his gaze to the skies above Cephiro, trying to find answers there. None came to him, though the storm was filled with immense destructive power. He thought of the frightened citizens Ferio might be attending. When the door to his chambers opened again, the one person the two men had recently been discussing entered.

If Clef might have thought Ferio sent her to him, his mind was changed by the saddened look on the girl's face. He could not refuse her offer of company. Instead, he conjured the chair for her and let her speak.

-&-

After Umi had left his chambers and all in the castle were sleeping again, Clef had one persistent thought. Ferio might not have been so wrong about him after all. He _had_ said her name when they were all gathered in the throne room. He remembered it with frightening clarity, just as he remembered calling out to her again as she was taken away by her mashin Selece.

Had Umi come to him because he called out to her? If Ferio had noticed his action, the others might have as well. If not that, had his own subconscious wish in this land where belief is power been strong enough to affect her? He couldn't imagine that it was so because she had been truly troubled. He saw her clenched hands and misted eyes.

As he considered her, he felt her name on his lips again. "Umi," he said to satisfy that urge.

His urges seemed to be growing in the mere hours since Prince Ferio had planted the strange idea into his consciousness thinking. He'd taken Umi's hand when she spoke to him. It was an offer of comfort in the time of her sadness. Though it was a simple gesture, he realized that he'd never actually touched the other Knights. Holding hands was not _supposed_ to be such an intimate gesture, but in the context of who he was, it represented volumes.

He didn't know if she would realize that about him, but he quickly tamped down his thoughts. So she _was_ special to him. Now was not the time to ponder the implications of it. Despite what he'd told her about taking care of herself first, he felt his own first duty was to Cephiro. The mage would wait. His time, if he had any, would come later.

**FIN**

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A/N**: This is a response to a review of Cutie Eskimo's "Sleepless Night" because there is _definitely_ canon evidence of Clemi in the manga, and Clemi fans have to stick together. Thanks for the beta suggestions, Yume-chan!


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